


Success in Progess

by danvssomethingorother



Category: The Venture Bros
Genre: I like the head canon so I decided to just go with it, I'll get back to you on specific warnings when I figure out where this is going, M/M, Rusty is trans, Self indulgent AU that will lead to Brock punching Jonas in the face, Slow Burn, remember that successful Rusty you see for like five seconds?, this is his origin story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-22
Updated: 2019-01-11
Packaged: 2019-07-15 14:18:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 21,857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16064882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/danvssomethingorother/pseuds/danvssomethingorother
Summary: Brock gets invited to the Venture compound by Jonas himself to protect his son.





	1. Welcome to Team Venture, p1

“Ah you must be Mr. Samson.”

Brock was an intimidating looking man himself but there was something about Jonas Venture that made him feel small. He had a larger then life aura about him that made him tower above everyone, something about the way that he spoke, no matter how friendly he was being, that threatened he would cut you down and destroy you if you crossed him. 

“I hope you found the compound easily,” Venture offered his hand and Brock just glared towards it a moment, before taking it and griping his new employer’s hand tight making the man chuckle at his show of masculinity.

“Everyone knows where the Venture Compound is,” was all Brock said keeping his face neutral, not letting any emotion slip making Venture’s smile widen.

“Of course,” Venture said with a chuckle tilting his head towards the massive structure behind him and having Brock follow. 

The sliding glass doors slid open for them and a secretary young enough to be Jonas’s child perked up and gave him a seductive smile as she greeted them, eyes not even bothering to trail Brock’s way, she only saw Jonas. Brock let a little emotion slip as he rolled his eyes, of course Jonas Venture was fucking his secretary.

Brock turned away from the display as she leaned over the large desk and began filling her boss in on everything that had been going on in the compound since he had been away. It sounded like he had just arrived back not long before Brock had arrived, Brock decided to have a look around the facility as he noticed the young woman’s hand resting on top of Jonas’s. 

He wandered down the hall way and heard someone laughing.

“Come on Rust, stop teasing Billy, he’s a big fan of yours, ya know,” he knew that voice, it had been a long time since he heard it but that was Rusty Venture’s idiot albino friend. He smirked, nerds stuck together he supposed. 

“I’m sorry but you really think the dinosaur thing happened? Come on, come on, that was Brisby and my dad’s idea to get better ratings. We never went to freaking Jurassic Park!”

The hall was lined with what looked like conference rooms, giant windows giving a clear view into each one. He glanced in one finding Jonas’s baby boy himself.

It seemed Rusty’s acne had finally cleared up and it looked like Daddy had finally made him get that haircut. Instead of long, knotted red locks it was just a large fluff of red bouncing with each laugh, it suited him better Brock thought leaning against the wall waiting for his father to catch up to him just watching his former room mate mess around with his friends.

Rusty was sitting on top of the high presentation podium, the prince he was in this compound, lanky legs straddling the sides and childishly flicking rudder bands at the child? Man? weirdo in any case with the giant head Brock didn’t know, his partner in crime leaning against the podium and holding out a rubber band ball for Rusty to peel from and flick at the poor underling before them.

“Cut it out, dick,” he growled out swatting his hand and ducking under a desk, narrowly avoiding a rubber band, “When the hell is your dad going to get here anyway?”

The mention of his father was enough to wipe the large grin off his face and sighed, shrugging his shoulders.

“He was going to be back this morning, but hey, whatever, even if he’s not here, it doesn’t mean we can’t see the big project on schedule. I can—”

“You weren’t planning on showing our guests our big project without me, were you Rust?”

Rusty instantly jumped off the podium and tensed himself upright at the voice of his father echoing from the loud speaker that made even Brock flinch.

“Please bring our guests to the lobby and we shall begin our tour of the compound, I know they have all been dying to see it.”

With that, the speaker cut out and Rusty’s carefree smile seemed to be gone leaving a forced one its wake as he shrugged to his friends, taking the rubber band ball from the albino and picking up the mess he made, almost as if to stall for time.

The smaller man almost impatiently began grabbed the rubber bands Rusty was putting back on the ball and slammed them on the table, excitedly grabbing onto Rusty’s hand and dragging him from the room. The albino paused a moment longer in the room, face crest fallen as his friend’s taking an extra moment to drop a few extra balls onto the table before leaving.

None seemed to notice Brock in their hurry to get to Jonas. 

The albino grabbed onto Rusty’s hand and like a line of kindergarteners late for their first day of class, half jogged the short way to the lobby. Brock stayed behind them, so this is why Jonas wanted OSI assistance, it didn’t seem for him but for his son and the personal assistants his son had chosen for whatever big project they were working on. 

Jonas’s smile was more casual as the nerds filled around him, less of a threat behind it but Brock didn’t miss the way his own son still deflated under it.

“I am truly sorry I couldn’t be here when you arrived last night, but I have heard many great things about you two from my son and you are just the perfect people to assist us in our project!” Jonas clapped his hands together, Brock knew the men before him were young but they weren’t actual children so he didn’t know why he was treating them like they were. His son and the Albino were two years older then Brock, but hell maybe the big headed one was a child genius or something and this was more for show for him. 

“Oh my god! You are Jonas Venture!” the big headed (man? boy?) proclaimed yanking hard at Jonas’s hand making him chuckle, “I am a huge fan of yours! Billy Whalen! It’s an honor to finally meet you and your son!”

The poor bastard was just rambling now, the albino and Rusty just glanced towards each other silently debating if they should save him before he drowned in his own spit he was splashing out as he stuttered along singing Jonas’s praises. Jonas though, didn’t seem to mind, just drinking in the praise, face glowing at someone tripping over themselves to embarrass themselves for him.

Rusty finally stepped forward putting a stop to it putting a hand on Billy’s shoulder and loudly announcing he needed to let Pete introduce himself, not so gently shoving the small man child away from his father.

“I would never forget my son’s best friend,” Jonas said with a chuckle taking Pete’s hand and giving a firm shake that nearly made the albino’s eyes pop out at the pressure, “You haven’t changed a bit since my son brought you home from college! How have you been, Petey?”

“Eh ya know, its been fine since the network cancelled me and Billy’s show but it’s a huge help to us that you let us in on this project, we really needed it.”

That’s where Brock had seen the big headed child from, he was Quiz Boy. Well not really a boy, more like a man child. It all made sense why Rusty was friends with them now. One TV icon looking out for another. 

“Of course! When Rusty told me you were a computer expert, it seemed like a no brainer! And your friend is a neuro doctor?”

“Well not formally,” Billy said scratching the back of his head, “I never got my degree—”

“Well from the test results you sent back, you are very qualified without one,” Jonas said affectionally grabbing onto Billy’s shoulder making him glow with the praise.

“I only hire the best gentleman and after thoroughly going through your files, I knew you were the best and its best for Rusty’s first project be with people he can trust, especially in this trying time.”

Jonas dropped the chipper act and turned somber at that clearing his throat and motioning his head for Brock to come forward, Rusty watched him with a frown, making it clear he didn’t think his presence was necessary.

“The Guild I can handle but Spinx has become more deranged after their unsuccessful attempt on my life a few years back. I had to reach out to the OSI for assistance after the numerous threats I shall not tolerate they have been leaving my son, Rusty.”

“What um…kind of threats?” Billy asked quietly glancing at Jonas.

“Those are classified,” Brock cut in silencing anymore questions, “All you need to know is I’m here to help keep your little science project going without any of you being harmed.” 

Rusty snorted at that, “They all say that.”

“Rusty,” his father hissed at him giving him a warning look.

Rusty shut up at that hiss making Brock frown, he had seen in the paper work that Jonas had a few body guards here before him, but it was classified what had happened to them.

“Let’s just get on with the tour,” Rusty half begged and his father slipped back on his grin leading them all out the door to show off his compound.


	2. Welcome To Team Venture, p2

The tour was just for show, the safe version you showed dying kids whose last wish was just to see the Venture Compound because they loved Rusty Venture so much. All the secrets and interesting stuff safely locked up, out of sight and if you wanted to see more, Jonas’s dazzling show man smile and the flare he gave to the mundane things everyone knew about was all it took to get you to shut up.

Brock sat in the very back of the people mover keeping his eyes on Venture’s heir, quietly sitting there every once in awhile turning towards the albino and opening his mouth as if to say something but remaining quiet when his father glanced his way. 

The only one eating up Jonas’s show and bullshit facts was Billy who was even asking questions and excitedly trying to tell Jonas and Rusty fun facts he had heard about their own compound. 

Brock took this time to take in the security measures silently taking notes for him to check it out more later.

After what felt like hours of being on a tour from hell, Brock noticed the albino sleeping soundly against Rusty’s shoulder. Rusty was annoyedly trying to knock him off but stopped moving each time his dad’s eyes hit him.

He only found some strength in himself to complete the task after they came to a stop by a building that definitely wasn’t intended for the public to ever enter. Pete scowled at the rude awakening but seeing Jonas’s eyes on the pair, didn’t attempt anything on his son.

“This, gentlemen, shall be our working quarters,” Jonas said easily stopping the people mover and stepping out, “I apologize it is so far out, I would usually just use the down stairs lab for something like this but with the Spinx threats and the recent fire, I felt we needed a more secure place for a project so important.”

“Fire?” Billy questioned just as alarmed as Brock himself was at this news.

“Yeah my last body guard went crazy and tried to burn us alive,” Rusty said with a shrug, crawling over his friend who wasn’t getting out of the vehicle fast enough for his liking.

Pete, who had seemed like he was on the up and up of Venture history looked surprised by this, sitting there a moment longer before Rusty and Billy whined for him to hurry up.

Brock trailed behind them listening to the history lesson for once on this building. It was fire proof, he had been using it as a fall out bunker of sorts for his most prized inventions Jonas didn’t wish to be destroyed by any of the sieges on the castle.

The first floor was for show, filled with junk from the Rusty Venture show Jonas had collected over the years instantly brightening up Billy’s mood once more. Jonas chuckled and told him he could take what he liked later, but now there was science to be done.

Jonas popped open a trap door at the end of the room and disappeared down it, Rusty didn’t hesitate to do the same. His friends however stood nervously looking at each other before glancing back down into the dark tunnel leading only god knew where.

“After you Billy,” White said with a smile extending his hand towards the entrance.

“No way, this is reminding me way too much of the time Jonas’s brain was taken over by pod people who were trying to steal everyone’s brains. This is a trap.”

“Its not a trap, you are being a big wuss, its just a scary hole in the ground in a junk garage.” 

“Dude, this is all first edition merch from the Rusty Venture show, its far from junk! And if you aren’t scared, you go down there!”

“I am going to toss you down there if you don’t hurry up,” Brock snarled at Billy and Pete who instantly stopped bickering, Pete disappearing first while Billy took a nervous glance at Brock before he too disappeared. Brock was the last down, quickly scaling his way down the secure rung ladder.

“What took you so long,” Rusty sneered at them as they finally caught up to the Ventures in what appeared to be a normal looking lab, but normal labs were never this hidden from the public. Something about all of this just wasn’t sitting right with Brock as he stepped towards the nerds gathering around Jonas who was by a white board fiddling with some equations while he waited for them all to catch up.

Written at the top of the Board was the title ‘Problem Light’ and under it was a crude rough sketch of a box with a red eye in the center.

“Excuse us for being a little nervous of the weird secret lab,” Pete scoffed playfully punching his friend in the arm before leaning close to Rusty and whispering as if Brock couldn’t hear him, “What is with the secrecy anyway? This illegal? Should we be letting that fella in here?”

“It may be frowned upon later but its hardly illegal,” Jonas chuckled.

“You, um haven’t been to the Amazon lately have you?” Billy asked nervously wringing his hands.

“No brain slugs up here,” Jonas chuckled lightly tapping his own head, “No this is a safety precaution because of Spinx and of course the Guild or anymore unexpected fires. This is so nothing destroys our progress and makes us have to restart our work.”

“And even if it was illegal, I would permit Brock down here, he is here to help keep you three safe and safety is the most important thing.”

Rusty snorted at that but said nothing. 

“So, um…what are we going to be working on?” Pete asked leaning up against the counter nearly knocking some glass vials on the floor making Brock snort, it didn’t seem like safety was that important since Jonas just chuckled at that and didn’t scold him.

“We are going to work together to put a stop to something that has been plaguing man kind since the beginning.”

“A cure for Cancer?” Billy ventured a guess.

“Bad hair days,” Pete joked nudging at Rusty who swatted back at him.

“While those are equally as bad,” Jonas said with a bit of an eye roll and shake of his head, “I was talking about death itself. A way to put a stopper on it before it can take the best and brightest minds away from us before they can really make progress on the world.” 

“And how we gonna do that? That seems pretty impossible,” Billy said finally showing some good skepticism in the man.

“Everything seems impossible at first, but great men like us have always been able to find a way to beat the odds.”

He turned towards them with a smile that would make any weak-willed person sway to it, his words promising anything was possible. Well, he was Jonas Venture, he had done some impressive feats in the past, so why wouldn’t these idiots just take everything he said at face value?

Rusty didn’t seem to share their new-found enthusiasm as Jonas began rambling about his little ideas and being generous enough to allow participation from the rest of the class.

Jonas had introduced this as Rusty’s project, yet he seemed to have very little say or control over it, constantly being talked over by his dad and just standing back and letting him talk finally.

Brock would have been more concerned with that if Rusty’s ideas didn’t seem utterly stupid, even to someone like Brock who barely knew anything about science.

\----

After a long day of Brock just standing in the back of the room and watching a bunch of nerds spit ball ideas, Jonas finally lead them all to the living quarters and it seemed even here secrets were hidden. On opening the door, Brock picked up the faint sound of babies crying and Rusty pushed past both Brock and his father, both glaring at their charge, as he instantly ran up the stairs.

“Rust is a daddy,” Pete said with a giggle at Brock’s confused state, “Little baby twins. Little boy adventurers in the making.”

“I did not want my grandchildren on his files,” Jonas said after not so gently ushering Billy through the door, “The higher ups of course know but it is listed as classified until I choose to reveal them to the world. I fear I revealed Rusty himself too early in my excitement and that caused nothing but problems down the line.” 

Brock thought that was an understatement, Rusty’s first kidnappings was at three and according to his files, was nearly sacrificed on a satanic alter by one of Jonas’s ex-girlfriends. Whether or not that ex was Rusty’s own mother, Brock didn’t know, his mother’s identity was also classified.

“I trust Rusty set you two up in your quarters last night?” Jonas asked turning a serious look towards the scientists looking ready to tear his son a new one if he hadn’t.

“Oh yeah, Rust showed us our room, but it doesn’t seem like there will be enough room for this fella since Kano and that other guy live here too.”

“Rodney is moving out,” Jonas said with a chuckle, “I am sure Billy was happy to see Action Man before he retired from Team Venture.” 

“Billy got him to sign his autograph book,” Pete chuckled walking over to the couch and making himself at home, “Ya better watch out Jonas, he will be trying to get you next.”

“I will gladly sign your book,” Jonas said bending to Billy’s level like he was an actual child and gripping his shoulder reassuringly, Brock thought Billy would pass out from excitement just the way stars flew from his eyes.

Jonas turned his attention to the staircase as Rusty finally reappeared, a baby in each arm and a large Asian man walking behind him.

“How are the Junior members of Team Venture doing?” Jonas asked a seriousness laced in his gentle words.

“They were fine while we were gone today, Kano is actually competent with children unlike Helper,” with just the bitterness alone in his tone Brock could tell there was a history there.

“Helper was designed to take care of children,” Jonas chuckled holding his arms out expecting Rusty to hand him one of his grandchildren but Rusty did not, he kept going to the couch before sitting with Pete who took the blonde one instead.

“Little Hank is a dead ringer for Samson, you not telling us something, Rust?” the albino chuckled holding the baby up and Brock just stared back at the drooling creature he was not informed about. He was also not informed most of Team Venture had left. Or that Jonas was trying to make some kind of immortality machine. 

“No, my son is not related to the hired help,” Rusty grumbled back swatting at his friend who kept bouncing his son in his arms. 

Brock tuned their bickering out easily staring at the man’s father’s easy smile that was always seemed to be hiding something.

He knew he was going to get no answers from Jonas, all his information was under the heavy lock and key of his charismatic smiles and easy lies and misdirection but Rusty, he might be able to answer him.

“Will dinner be ready soon?” Jonas asked with his usual smile as he turned to a mini bar preparing himself a drink and Kano merely nodded not saying a word as he disappeared into the kitchen where Brock caught the site of a blue robot running around with a chef hat on.

This was the weirdest job he had ever agreed to be apart of and he had once fought David Bowie in Berlin over some sacred artifact that was rumored to grant immortality. Boy would Jonas have loved to have that thing, too bad it melted in Lava…

Pete had already turned on the TV, some sitcom was on that he and Rusty seemed to be arguing over. Rusty was of the opinion it was lame, Pete thought it was high art.

“She’s a teenage witch and her cat talks! What else do you need?”

“Something that isn’t garbage?” Rusty growled back failing to swat the remote from his friend without jostling his child, “Besides the stupid cat gives Hank nightmares, you know that.”

“It gives you nightmares,” Pete hissed back sitting on the remote, so his friend couldn’t steal it, “Hank here loves the damn cat. Don’t ya Hank?”

“Cat!” Hank gurgled reaching towards the black cat on the TV.

Jonas like the king he was, sat high in his arm chair, legs folded and one arm over the back and whiskey in hand like he was posing for a fashion magazine. Keeping a close eye on everything going on in the room, not paying any attention to Billy leaning over the arm of the couch, rambling to him about the man’s own many adventures.

“Brock, please have a seat,” Jonas commanded, and Brock did as he was told not wanting any trouble to come from the first night on the job. He sat in the middle of the circular couch, just between the nerds arguing and the babies getting fussy on his left and the nerd groveling to the personification of God himself. 

There was nothing for Brock do here, so he got up to leave, maybe go collect his duffle bag from the car and do a perimeter check before dinner and finding a way to sneak into Rusty’s room later tonight to get some real answers from him. Something just didn’t feel about this entire situation. Nothing. Keeping Rusty’s children a secret, having only two assistants who were rather new to the field of science for such a large project, all the blacked-out information on Venture’s files, the last body guard losing her mind after being here six months.

He felt Jonas’s eyes watching him as he got up to leave and was just at the door when Jonas called for him. He turned his head back noticing the only ones still making any noises were the fussy infants, he momentarily locked eyes with Rusty who mouthed something to him while Jonas’s head was turned from him and it only made the oddness of this assignment sink in more.

‘You can’t just leave.’

“Where are you headed?”

“I was going to get my things from my car---”

Jonas merely chuckled cutting him off with a wave of his hand, gulping down the rest of his whiskey before he said firmly.

“Its all already been taken care of, I had Helper bring your things into your new room while we were busy today. Just relax, have a drink, go take a dip in my pool, unwind my dear boy. You must learn to relax.”

“Your robot touched my car?” Brock almost sneered and Rusty seemed to sense the danger like a second sense, collected his other child from Pete and was already hurrying back up the stairs, Pete dragging Billy with them. 

“Relax, relax, Helper didn’t harm your car,” he chuckled, “You left the keys in the hanger! He just merely unlocked the trunk and transferred your one duffel bag to your new room. If you would like I can show you there?”

“What’s your game?” Brock couldn’t help but question out loud.

“There is none,” Jonas said like a father trying to comfort his child, “You have been on the front line so long, I think you are just looking for one. Spinx isn’t here right now, you can let your guard down sometimes. You must learn to do so or you will lose yourself, trust me on this.”

“I have watched you look for a threat all day, Spinx like the Guild before them is not subtle, you will know when you need to prepare for battle. I appreciate you take your job more seriously then the last hack they sent here but you are young, Brock, you don’t need to be so tense. Don’t go looking for threats that aren’t there. I hired you in case of emergencies to keep my son safe, that doesn’t mean you must lose your sanity looking for a threat every waking moment. It is the first day, just breath and get used to the surroundings gradually, that is all you have to do.” 

He patted Brock on the shoulder gently, “Your room is down that hallway on the left-hand side, Kano’s is right next door if you ever require anything. Upstairs,” he pointed his glass the way Rusty and his friends had disappeared to, “Is our sleeping quarters. Mine at the very end of the hall if you ever need me, Billy and Pete’s to the left-hand side and Rusty and his sons are to the right. That is the lay out I know you must have been dying to scope out for yourself, but you don’t need to. You only need to ask Brock. We aren’t the enemy, we may do things you don’t understand but we do them for a reason.” 

“I asked for privacy as a top operative of the OSI myself, I helped fund the organization back in ’62, I feel I have earned my privacy in their files. You know what the Guild has done to my Rusty and what they have continued to do to him to this day and now Spinx is in the mix, I don’t want Rusty fearing for those boys lives like I had to, so I leave them out of our documents.”

Brock did know, that was some of the stuff that wasn’t classified. A few months ago they had been sending dead snakes to the Venture compound making demands for Venture’s son or the entire compound would be destroyed, they had yet to make due on that threat.

“Are the boys the former body guard’s…” Brock began before Jonas cut him off with a frown.

“Dean and Hank are not her sons, she came to that conclusion herself when her and Rusty began an intimate relationship and she became a tab bit too attached,” Jonas said with a sigh and shake of his head, “The compound catching fire? That wasn’t Spinx or the Guild.”

“And you still want OSI protection after that?”

“I am getting old, Kano is getting old, Team Venture is barely holding together because they are all married and wish for more time with their families instead of keeping things like they always have been,” Jonas chuckled a tinge of sadness in his eyes, “One psycho doesn’t automatically change the fact the OSI is a competent organization with people like yourself willing to help me. Not only with Spinx but to protect Rusty when I am gone. I love my son, my greatest project, my legacy, more then words can tell but he is weak, and he needs someone to look after him always.”

“I can’t guarantee I will be here forever,” Brock grumbled shaking his head.

“I can’t force it on you, but I hope you can one day call yourself a member of Team Venture, Mr. Samson, I can already tell you are a reliable young man.”

Jonas patted Brock fondly on the arm before leading him to the bar to share a drink with him and Brock didn’t feel he could refuse him. Rusty’s warning stuck on his mind though and left him lying in bed staring at the ceiling long after he had retired.

‘You can’t just leave.’

A part of him almost wanted to trust Jonas, he didn’t seem like that bad of a guy and well his son did seem like a bit of a pompous, ungrateful little asshole but he still couldn’t shake that warning. Would he be able to leave when this was all said and done?


	3. The Study

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shit kinda gets real in this chapter.

The days then weeks then three months had passed in the Venture Compound with very little happening. Each day bleeding into the next, what had almost seemed like a potentially interesting assignment maybe fighting leagues of henchmen and assassins or maybe uncovering some deep hidden secret Jonas Venture was sitting on was only hopeful thinking at this point. 

He had settled into a boring routine but it all seemed to change one morning.

He had been doing his morning checks of the compound, but unlike most mornings Kano didn’t accompany him. He had been his silent shadow trailing behind him on all his duties since he had arrived, he had given up on trying to get conversation from him after the first few days when he was just met with silence.

That day however, he had been left to do things alone. He came back inside found Billy and Pete still asleep in their room despite it nearly being noon, the twins were down for a nap too it seemed in Rusty’s room but the Ventures themselves were not anywhere to be found. 

He paused outside the study door hearing the familiar voices wafting out.

“You can’t hide it forever, they are going to figure it out.” 

He debated just leaving but found himself staying where he was at by the door, listening ready to move in if he was needed.

“And what do you suggest I do, Rusty?” 

Jonas sounded annoyed, no pretense of kindness in his tone, just anger that must have been bubbling under his mask too long. He heard the clinking of glass, he was drinking. He heard Rusty’s annoyed sigh, he would have to wager Rusty was the only one sober in that room. A surprise really, Brock had seen how his son liked to drink most nights.

“Do you suggest I tell your little friends we are working on a way to expand my life? Tell your idiot boyfriend I am dying?”

“Me and Pete weren’t dating in college, stop throwing that in my face! Why even bring him here if you hate him so much?” 

A rattling of pill bottles and the sound of more alcohol being poured. Rusty’s uneven breathing, Brock had to assume he was panicking right now. Stuck alone in a room with a man twice his size who was mad at you and intoxicated, any sane person probably would have left but you don’t just leave when it came to Jonas.

“Of course, you weren’t dating, you just climb in bed with anyone who will have you! You drove your last body guard insane doing that shit!”

“I did not want a body guard! Maybe we wouldn’t have to worry about wackos burning our home down if you hadn’t insisted on---” 

Glass shattered against the ground, Brock could only imagine Jonas knocking his expensive whiskey set onto the floor with one sweep of his hand. He heard him pound his fist against the table and could almost see this man finally showing his true colors looming over his son on the other side of the desk, not allowed to leave by rules Jonas had forced into his head years ago.

“I insisted?! I had to let the OSI come into our home after you went off and pissed off Spinx! You leave home and you bring back threats we can not handle on our own because you once more jump into bed with people you shouldn’t! I told you to leave Benton’s boy be but no no, you insisted on going to help him!” 

“Johnny was my friend! He needed help and it isn’t my fault it ended up like this!” 

Rusty choked out those words, he didn’t sound ready to cry, he sounded ready to start screaming himself but was somehow holding it back.

“You jump in bed with him and you come home with babies and an entire evil organization wanting your blood! There are much more pertinent things to be done right now but no no, you must go make it about yourself! Daddy must always clean up your messes before any important work is done!” 

He heard something clatter on the floor and heavy foot steps heading towards the door, Rusty was done listening to his father. He heard Rusty hissing he was fucking drunk and he wasn’t going to deal with this but that anger seemed to burn out at his father’s next command.

“Sit down Rusty this instant, I am not done talking!”

Brock frowned listening to sobbing on the other end of the door and Jonas demanding his son stop it but Rusty didn’t try to leave, because you couldn’t just leave. Jonas didn’t permit it yet. He was god of this compound and most usually just fell into line willingly.

Brock was just realizing Rusty was what happened when you didn’t fall into line fast enough. 

Rusty walked out a few moments later after a round of verbal abuse, closing the door firmly behind him and just stared awkwardly at Brock, looking like a deer caught in head lights.

“Its fine,” he sneered Brock’s way before marching off, his door slamming shut hard enough to finally wake up Pete and Billy who came down stairs looking for answers Brock couldn’t give.

\---

Brock found Rusty in his room later that evening, having refused to come out of his room for any reason the rest of the day, only sending for Helper to get things for the babies from the kitchen for him. He just stood awkwardly in the door way, he was about to leave, it really wasn’t his job to help his charge’s emotional state, the only thing that really mattered was his physical being. His father did not hurt him physically, so it wasn’t his job to fix it.

“You heard us, didn’t you?” Rusty finally mumbled turning his head towards him and rising from the bed, “You heard me and my dad fighting earlier?” 

“It was hard not to,” was all Brock said in response leaning against the doorway, not wanting to really walk into the land mine of room scattered with junk and baby toys unless he had to.

“I hate being here,” Rusty finally said after a long stretch of silence, “I would rather be Spinx’s captive then be here.”

“I know what you’re thinking,” Rusty chuckled humorlessly getting up to lean over the cradle in his bedroom, “Then leave, no one is stopping you, just fucking leave you idiot.”

He brushed his fingers over the tiny blonde’s forehead making him fussy as he tried to sleep then looked into the cradle awkwardly shoved against it in the small space, gently leaning forward and picking up the brunette baby and holding him close.

“I thought I could when I was in college, I thought I would make it without him, but well it didn’t work. I had to come home or risk my sons dying because of the mistakes I made.”

He turned away from Brock gently bouncing the baby he had woke up himself and soon the other began crying as well. Brock reached down and picked the blonde baby up just staring at him, he didn’t know how to hold him but his father wasn’t forcing him from him, so he must have been doing ok.

“What did you do to piss off Spinx?”

“I’m not your god damn after school special, I don’t really need to go into a heart felt moment with you about how I fucked up.”

“I kinda got assigned to protect you from them.”

“Yeah it must suck being somewhere you don’t want to be,” Rusty shrugged laying down on his bed resting Dean on his chest as the baby began to fall back asleep, “Its funny how that works, the person I don’t want to be here the most is the only one I can really relate to. We’re both stuck here and don’t have anywhere better to be.”

Brock just grunted neither agreeing nor disagreeing sitting on the bed with the man he was assigned to protect, he didn’t think he had really had a conversation with him despite being here so long. It was only ever Jonas he talked while Rusty faded into the background hardly speaking unless spoken to directly when his father was in the room. 

“You and your dad have a fucked-up relationship.”

“Tell me something I don’t know,” Rusty grumbled back running his fingers through his son’s hair.

They fell into another silence and Brock considered just leaving, the baby in his arms had fallen back asleep and Rusty didn’t seem like he wanted to talk. He was surprised when he felt the man grab onto his wrist gently.

“Hey,” he finally whispered, and Brock grunted back to show he was listening, “Do you remember when we were roommates?”

“I didn’t think you did,” Brock responded, and he had been under the impression the man had just forgotten, it wasn’t like they talked to each other much in those days anyway and well despite being hired to protect him, he didn’t really interact much with him now either.

“I would never forget an ass beating like that,” Rusty snorted through a laugh that shook Dean awake making him gently punch his father with his little fists and whine loudly. Rusty chuckled reaching his head up to kiss his son before running gentle circles in his back with his fingers as he continued talking.

“I kinda missed you when you left, I honest to god think you only spoke to me to tell me to move my shit or clean up my shit or get out of here, you wanted privacy but the guy who came after you was a massive douche. He never shut up and made me want to blow my brains out every time he started on me about his stupid theories about what happens to adult Rusty as if I wasn’t fucking adult Rusty.”

Brock just watched him ramble glancing down at the blonde baby in his arms that was now awake and excitedly tugging at his shirt.

“What I’m getting at is I think I’m happy you are here again. You don’t fall for my dad’s bullshit like everyone else, you just stand there bored out of your mind all day. I feel safer with you just standing there then I think I have ever felt in my life. If I can’t just leave, then at least you will be here to make sure nothing happens to us.”

“I have beat the shit out you and your idiot friends before, you aren’t worried I’ll go crazy like the last one?”

Rusty thought about it a minute turning his head towards Brock.

“No because you aren’t gullible like she was, you aren’t playing to my dad’s bullshit.”

Brock turned his full attention towards Rusty, making the baby squeal annoyed in his arms yanking hard at his long blonde hair trying to get his attention back on him.

“He screams when Billy touches him,” Rusty chuckled, “It seems he finally found someone he likes.”

Brock was about to ask him more when he saw Rusty’s communicator watch glowing. Rusty sighed loudly as Helper came in the room instantly taking Dean from him as he forced himself up to answer his dad’s call.

“Rust, you need to send Brock down to my study.”

Brock frowned, how did this man always know what everyone was doing in the house? Rusty turned to him and shook his head gently taking Hank from him with his other arm making the baby begin screaming loudly.

“Why don't you go join Pete and Billy? They are think tanking in the living room, we didn't get any work done today, so make up for lost time and all that.”

Rusty just nodded more annoyed then anything patting Brock on the shoulder as he followed Helper out of the room.


	4. The Start of Well....a Relationship p1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did edit the last chapter a little because I changed my mind of what I was doing. Not much just small details.

For the second time today Brock approached the study, he just stared at the door a moment hearing Jonas inside fiddling with a radio before a song Brock didn’t know began to fill through the area.

“I still hang around…neither lost nor found,” the music sang to him as he opened the door, Jonas had his back to him staring at the photos on the back wall, holding one gently running his thumb across it.

There was glass broken around his desk from the fight he had earlier with Rusty, a giant stain settled in his carpet still giving off the strong smell of whiskey. A fresh bottle of the finest whiskey replaced it on his desk but the cleaned up presentation of his desk couldn’t hide the fact he had done nothing to clean up the mess from earlier, had cleaned himself up to present himself to Billy earlier and go over the project more but back behind closed doors he didn’t bother to hide his bad attitude at the slow process.

Brock was paying more attention to the pill bottle sitting on the desk, unlabeled and nearly empty with only two pills left when Jonas finally decided to address him.

“This was the song I remember most vividly from the night I almost died,” Jonas admitted to Brock finally turning around to face him, setting an old worn out photo of a baby with red hair down on the desk, it had to be Rusty’s baby picture. The baby looked nothing like Hank and Dean, it was too skinny, almost malnourished looking. Brock could only assume Jonas didn’t leave baby pictures of his own son out because of how sickly he looked, bad for his image. He just kept any photos showing how he mistreated his own child locked away.

“That was my first encounter with Spinx but I’m sure you know. I built the Gargantua like a fortress, not something easily penetrated, only those with top level clearance could board my shuttle. Where the Guild failed, Spinx stepped in and became the top-level Villainous organization over night when they brought my creation to the ground.”

Brock continued to not say anything letting Jonas ramble on, waiting for him to get to a point. He had read the files, he couldn’t feel too much sympathy for Jonas Venture’s space station being forced to land. A lot of people died during the massacre that the OSI dubbed ‘Movie Night’, so many law suits were filled by the family members of the deceased, the US government stepped in and shut down the Gargantua, scrapping its parts for Nasa to use later.

Jonas poured another drink, just staring at the many pictures behind him of his son almost as if waiting for Brock to say something. Trying to evaluate how much Rusty had told him, who’s side he thought Brock was on.

Brock just sat where he assumed Rusty had sat earlier and didn’t say a thing, waiting for Jonas to keep going.

“Rusty is young, naïve…he doesn’t understand why things need to be done this way.”

He sighed picking the baby photo up once more and just staring at it.

“He doesn’t like the way I am running things. He doesn’t understand why we must hide what we hide, even from our friends. He doesn’t understand why I so frustrated he did what he did. I love my son, I love him more then anything in this entire world, but he is a foolish young man.”

“I know you heard us fighting earlier, I know it must seem crass of me to interrupt you when you are finally breaking through with my son and you two are finally talking, but he is always trying to make me out to be the bad guy. You should have heard the tall tales he told Pete when he was younger…he made it sound like I was some sort of monster! This is what lead to his last body guard burning down the complex!”

Brock just shrugged not really wanting to get involved in this. It wasn’t his job to deal with their fucked relationship, he would only step in if Jonas ever got trashed enough to physically harm his own son. Until that day, he didn’t have strong plans on getting involved. 

“You haven’t said a word since you came in, I wanted to talk to you before you saw Rusty but well that didn’t work out. I am sorry you have to be involved in our little dispute.”

“No offense,” Brock finally cut in curtly giving Jonas a stare that had made men larger then the man before him squirm, “But it sounded like a bit more then a dispute.” 

Jonas looked startled by his words, raising his eyebrow, not liking that someone was in the position to say something to him.

“Listen, I don’t want involved with whatever bullshit you want to do to your son behind closed doors. You want to yell at him until he cries, make him feel worthless, make him feel like a prisoner in his own home, that’s not really my business.” 

Brock paused just drinking in the look of disgust on Jonas’s face, not letting him really get a chance to lay more bullshit on him as he stared him in the eyes and continued.

“But if you lay a god damn hand on him, leave a single bruise, that’s my damn business. I will step in then and by the sounds of it, you can’t really do much to fight back since you are dying and all.” 

He said all he needed to say so he got up and broke the one silent rule most obeyed, he just left before Jonas could grant him permission to.

\---

“You guys aren’t even trying! This isn’t even a think tank anymore, this is just you two being assholes.” 

Brock paused in the entrance way of the living room, rolling his eyes at poor Billy trying his best to lead a think tank while his friends were curled on the couch, not paying him much attention. He was standing in front of a large roll white board that sat in front of the TV, dozens of equations doodled onto it and wadded up paper surrounded his feet from the note book that had been discarded on the couch. They hadn’t gotten anywhere since Brock last passed by them, even with Rusty downstairs now, Billy still wasn’t getting ideas from the scientists involved with the project. In fact, he was getting less done now with Rusty’s kids sitting with them now.

“I have twins, I’m tired,” Rusty whined laying across the couch.

“Your dad is trusting us to come up with a solution to make P.r.o.b.l.e.m stop catching fire when we turn it on. And your solution? Fuck it, let it burn, Billy. We didn’t get anything done today because you refused to come out of your room!”

“You didn’t get up till noon, so don’t pin it all on me,” Rusty grumbled bopping Hank gently in the nose with his bear as he began getting restless on his father’s lap, gently smacking his father and reaching for his hair. Rusty used to his sons’ tantrums by now, just sat coolly, gently pushing the bear closer to his son’s line of sight every time he thought about yanking at daddy’s hair.

“We didn’t get up till noon cause your dad was serving us drinks until like eleven last night,” Pete grumbled pillow still over his face, “I’m still hung over and you aren’t making things better fighting with your dad and slamming doors.”

“Who told you I was doing that?” 

Rusty looked ready to bolt back to his room but somehow kept it together enough to just give his nastiest look Billy’s way.

“Your dad said you two had got into an argument,” Billy mumbled sheepishly, “That’s why you were acting weird. Your dad is pretty cool, I don’t understand why you have to be such an asshole to him all the time.”

“Fuck you Billy,” Rusty sneered his way and pat Hank on the head as he began gurgling the word fuck Billy’s way. Brock felt Rusty was going to regret it someday letting his kids curse like that, but it was cute when they were babies and just repeating whatever you said, it wasn’t going to be as cute when they were teenagers.

“See? This is what I’m talking about, you are always so stand offish about everything! Where is your can-do attitude?”

“I think I left it back in fantasy land, I am not nor have I ever been anything remotely close to my cartoon self! Stop shoving it in my face when I’m not as chipper as you want me to be.” 

“Oh, will you two shut up,” Pete groaned tossing one of Dean’s stuffed animals in Billy’s direction and instantly regretted that choice as the once calm baby began screaming on his chest after his favorite toy had been yanked from him by his ‘Uncle’.

“I told you, you needed to cut off, but you just kept saying, ‘come on Rust, I can handle one more’,” Rusty grumbled Pete’s way picking Dean off him pulling him close to him while he screamed, yanking at his father’s hair, “See what your shitty think tank did Billy? It made Dean here go right for Daddy’s hair.”

“White’s hangover did that,” Billy argued back, hands on his hips really looking like a child now, “Your dad is trusting me to get the equations right and you guys aren’t helping!”

“Oh, go blow my dad some more if you love him so much,” Rusty growled Billy’s way picking up his screaming infants, cringing as Hank began yanking at his hair too.

Brock sighed finally stepping forward to take one of the screaming infants from their overwhelmed father and put his hand firmly on Rusty’s shoulder steering him towards the kitchen. 

“It won’t do any good, they won’t eat when they are like this,” Rusty grumbled becoming more irritated the more his son yanked at his hair. 

Brock still said nothing taking Dean from Rusty as well and shoving him into a chair at the kitchen table.

“You should probably eat something,” was all he said as he somehow managed to keep it together through the twin’s tantrum until they began to tire themselves out in Brock’s arms. 

“I’m not hungry,” Rusty sighed out trying to get up but Brock just pushed him back down.

“I have been here three months, you don’t eat breakfast and you haven’t been out of your room since your fight with your dad, eat. Then go take a bath. I’m going to put the twins to bed and then you should just go to bed.”

“What did my dad tell you to make you act like this?” Rusty grumbled but didn’t seem to want to fight him.

“Your dad is an asshole, don’t worry about it,” Brock said turning to leave the room. 

“What did you say to him?” Rusty asked almost nervously making Brock pause in the door way.

“You know you were right, I don’t want to be here, I hate every damn thing about this place,” Brock said turning to face Rusty who was just staring at him, “But I was assigned to protect you and if that means from your dad, so be it.”

Rusty looked ready to burst into tears but was doing an amazing job covering it as he turned his head away and mumbled a soft thank you. Brock didn’t respond to it, he just commanded him to eat once more and left the room.


	5. Water

Smoking had never been allowed in the house, it wasn’t really one of Jonas’s rules but Rusty’s. He made it clear the first time he saw Brock light up, he wanted him to go do it outside, he didn’t want that crap near his kids.

Sure, the man could down a bottle of wine holding his sons close to him on the couch but no it was the cigarettes that were the issue here that would not be tolerated around his little angels.

To Brock’s surprise, he found Rusty himself out in his usual spot on the patio smoking at three in the morning long before anyone would usually be up in the house. He was in his usual chair even, the baby monitor in his lap and his eyes stuck on the pool. 

“Hey,” Brock said making him nearly jump out of his skin and bolt up staring at Brock, breathing hard.

“Jesus,” he hissed at his body guard, “Don’t fucking do that shit.”

“I didn’t take you for a smoker,” he said nodding his head towards his sloppily rolled blunt he had in his hand.

“Its not tobacco, I found some old weed in the attic,” he said with a shrug taking a long drag of it before putting it out in the ash tray.

“Aren’t you a little old to be hiding weed from your dad?” Brock chuckled sitting across from him at the small table.

“I can’t sleep, it sometimes helps,” he admitted with a shrug just staring at the water, “The better question is why you are up. I get sick of seeing you during the day, I don’t particularly want you bothering me at night.”

“I’m not allowed to smoke in my room or anywhere in the house because of strict orders from some little pompous asshole,” Brock cracked a smile at his charge’s pure disgust at that statement.

“My children come first, and you are not giving them lung cancer,” Rusty sneered at the man, “My babies are all I have, the only thing I can do is protect them the best I can.”

“I gotta know,” Brock began and Rusty cut him off with a sharp look.

“I don’t want to play 20 questions with you.”

Brock ignored him exhaling a large puff of smoke, “Do the boys even have a mom? Or did you just create them in the lab with your dad.”

“They are mine,” was all Rusty said to answer his question frowning before thinking he needed to elaborate, “That is literally all you need to know, you don’t need to know their origin stories to protect them.”

“My job is to protect you,” Brock chuckled discarding his cigarette into the ash tray, “As far as the OSI is concerned your sons don’t exist.”

“As far as anyone is concerned, they don’t,” Rusty said with a sigh, “They don’t have any birth records and I would like to keep it that way till Spinx is dealt with. Ok, if it was up to me, they would never be revealed…”

“Don’t want any satanic cults trying to sacrifice your babies?” Brock asked and couldn’t help but be amused by the look of utter confusion on the other man’s face.

“I’m guessing that’s a memory I repressed, but OSI kept right at the top of my file?”

“Well its classified, but you wouldn’t remember that, you were three.”

“You’ll be surprised what I remember,” Rusty mumbled not taking his eyes off the water, “My first vivid memory is a poor man being beat to death in front of me. He wasn’t a threat, he was just some bozo with boxing gloves, maybe a level three arch?”

“He didn’t have a level, that was before that system went into place,” Brock answered, “But if he did have a ranking I would go with more level two, the man didn’t even own a single gun in his home, his widow told a sob story about how he didn’t like guns, he just literally wanted to have a boxing match with your old man.”

“Imagine that, my entire life fits neatly into some file the military keeps on hand.”

“Its more like an encyclopedia collection of big bulky files but yeah basically.”

“In college you were failing every class because you refused to read your text books and now you can read giant folders with every single trauma I have ever had to live though…what a strange world I live in.”

“It comes with the job,” Brock said with a shrug, “It helps giant blocks of text are covered up in black ink. Your dad went to a lot of trouble to keep a lot of aspects of your life classified, you don’t have a birth record either, for all I know you are just some random kid Jonas picked up on one of his adventures.”

“Hah, I could never get so lucky, I am Jonas Venture’s son.”

“Were you made in a lab?”

“Don’t make this freaking weird, we were having a moment.”

They sat in silence a few minutes before Rusty sighed getting up, Brock almost thought he was going to go back inside but he just pulled his robe off and began walking towards the pool.

Brock had never seen Rusty in short sleeves of any kind, he always wore long button up shirts and turtle necks under his lab coat and long pants. He should have expected the faint scars and burns running up and down his body like roots connecting his body to the nightmares that kept him up on nights like this.

It was just hard to swallow this man who was so lazy, apathetic and whiny about most things had lived through more war zones then Brock could imagine before he was old enough to even understand why he was being shot at. It was a little unnerving.

He didn’t get in the water at first, just sinking his legs into the water first, sitting on the edge and sighing contently. 

He didn’t really seem like he cared if Brock left or stayed, he was just going to remain where he was by the pool. Brock watched him for a little while finishing off his third smoke, glancing from the baby monitor Rusty had left on the table to Rusty himself gently wading into the water, not seeming to care about the cool breeze settling over them or the fact he was in a tank top and underwear, not exactly the most ideal swim wear.

He watched him disappear bellow the surface and just rolled his eyes leaving him be. It wasn’t his business if the man wanted to swim in the colder weather this early in the morning, he would just treat his sickness if it came and go on with life. 

\----

Brock returned from his daily run around the compound and perimeter check to find the entire house up as usual later that day.

Pete was never a morning person, he was half asleep swatting at Helper as he tried to serve him more eggs he probably didn’t ask for. He kept demanding the robot give him more creamer for his coffee, but the robot ignored him moving around the table beeping loudly making the albino more frustrated.

Billy was gulping down a stack of pancakes, babbling with his mouth full to Jonas who didn’t really look up from his paper, just responding with chipper grunts to show he was listening. 

Rusty was making empty threats to his twins as they duked it out in his arms, refusing to cooperate enough to eat any of the food he tried to offer them. 

All three young scientists had a similar trait to them: the bags under their eyes. They had been working themselves raw trying to stabilize P.r.o.b.l.e.m for weeks now and were having little success. They were reaching the breaking point.

Kano sat quietly in his corner of the table not saying a word as usual, just taking sips of his tea as Brock sat down next to Rusty, yanking one of the twins from his lap before they caused each other serious harm yanking and yelling at each other like they were. 

“Use the damn high chairs,” Brock grumbled forcing Hank into the one closest to him.

“Its easier to feed them off my plate,” Rusty tried to argue as Dean began yelling no at his father trying to feed him from the large stack of pancakes Helper had left before him.

“Alright, we won’t have breakfast,” his father sighed hefting the baby up as he got up from the table not touching any of the food left for him, kissing the baby on the cheek, gently blowing raspberries on his cheek until he began to giggle and cuddle against his father.

Brock handed Hank a rice cake sitting in the middle of the table and then stopped Rusty handing one to Dean as well, both babies sucking on them finally calming down.

“They aren’t morning people,” Rusty said with a shrug pressing a kiss against Hank making him squeal tossing the rice cake back Brock’s way and demanding his father pick him as well, which his father complied settling him on his other hip ready to leave the room but stopped as his father set the news paper down.

“You are spoiling them,” his father said with a shake of his head.

“They aren’t even one yet, spoiling them is literally taking care of them,” Rusty grumbled pressing a kiss against Dean as he began to squeal, bouncing them both in his arms, “I’m not going to let Helper just take care of my kids, they are mine.”

“Helper was made to raise children and do house work,” his father sighed with a shake of his head watching the robot pour him another cup of coffee, “Must we have this argument in front of everyone.”

“Let me help you, Rust, hand me one of them and sit back down, you need to eat, and the babies need to eat. Then we can all go back to the lab together.” 

All eyes were on Rusty now, he could either make a scene and have his friends think he was overreacting, or he could comply with his father. Rusty sighed before handing Dean off to his father, Dean was less fussy then Hank in general, it was the safer option.

Right at the moment, Rusty passed the baby to his father did Dean choose to act up. 

He tried to take his son back, but his father brushed him off, just holding the screaming infant a few moments before passing him to Helper who beeped spinning around a moment, before setting Dean in a high chair, forcing the baby to eat.

Rusty let Hank yank a wad of his hair out as he just watched his father get his way.

\----

Brock just stood in the back of the lab watching all the nerds argue, all in a big circle yelling at each other, blaming each other for the steaming wreckage that was there project.

Jonas was commanding them to stop but not one of them was done yelling at the other. Rusty was yelling the loudest spewing insult after insult his friends way and well they weren’t shy about shooting them back his way.

They had been down here for five hours and fatigue and failure was turning this space into a battle zone.

Rusty was ready to call it a day, spent yelling as much heading for the exit but instead of letting him go cool off, Jonas demanded his son stay before turning his frustration towards Pete and Billy demanding they stop acting like children.

“We are a team, we must act like one!” he reprimanded his team, glaring harshly at all of them, “Stop being children and let us work together to fix the problem.” 

They didn’t argue but didn’t apologize to each other either. They worked in silence for another two hours looking ready to jump at each other for any small misdemeanor.

Brock watched Pete take the screw driver Billy was using and once they went off on each other, getting into a tug of war over the device like children did Jonas call this off.

\----

Dinner was served in silence, none of them looking at each other.

Rusty maybe took three bites where as Pete shoved most of it in his mouth in record speed, Billy shoving it around on his plate but finally eating it all. Jonas the only one who ate his food calmly, basking in the chaos that surrounded him from the tired young men.

Brock had a second sense for danger and he knew a pin dropping would get them all yelling at each other again, they were all just spent, working non-stop on the same failing project day in and day out for so long with little rest was getting to them. 

“I’m sorry Jonas but I need a damn break from this thing,” Pete finally broke the silence, “I think we all need one. If it explodes again, I think I’m gonna strangle someone.”

“Yeah! Some rest would do us all good, then we won’t be at each other’s throats as bad!” 

Billy and Pete smiled at each other the first time in two days at the prospect of taking a break from the project. Rusty just stared nervously at his father as he sat in thought a moment before he broke into a large smile agreeing they should take a break from the assignment. 

Rusty continued to say nothing feeding his sons, the bags under his eyes more noticeable then they had ever been.

\---

It was one am and Brock jolted up hearing a loud creak in the floor board.

He pulled his knife out and crept down the hallway, keeping close to the wall to avoid any of the creaks himself not wanting to alert whoever it was.

He stopped at the study where the light was shining bright, a beacon in the other wise dark hallway. He peaked inside and frowned seeing Rusty sitting on the couch, arm rested on its back and staring back out to the pool water.

“What the hell are you doing in here at one in the morning?” he grumbled towards the man sheathing his weapon once more in his pants.

“I can’t sleep and I didn’t want to wake the boys,” Rusty said with a shrug.

“You haven’t slept in two nights, you need to go back to bed,” Brock said firmly but didn’t force him, it was only when he passed out from exhaustion did him not sleeping become his problem.

He frowned seeing a bottle clenched tight in his hands.

“What are you stealing?”

“I’m not stealing, they were prescribed to me,” Rusty said handing out the bottle and Brock took it from him.

Brock frowned not recognizing what kind of pills they were but that wasn’t the puzzling part, they were prescribed to him by his father. His father wasn’t that kind of doctor, he couldn’t just dope his son up.

“I bet ya didn’t know my father is also my therapist,” Rusty grumbled almost bitterly staring back out towards the water, “He got the degree just so I could seek counseling from him after someone criticized him and told him I needed help.” 

“What are these for?”

“Sleep,” Rusty said with a shrug, “I forgot to grab them earlier and didn’t really want to answer questions if Pete and Billy saw me with pills, they would just assume I’m back to my old habits.”

Brock frowned at that response but Rusty didn’t seem to want to let him in on what his habits were, he just yanked the bottle from his body guard wordlessly and began walking off.

Rusty had a fucked-up relationship with his dad and of course Jonas would just start drugging his son to make him cooperate better.

It didn’t sit right with Brock but that wasn’t intentionally hurting Rusty and until he overdosed, it really wasn’t his business.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> RIP me, I wrote this to get my mind off the cold I am getting.


	6. Sleeping Problems

Brock hadn’t opened the files since he had arrived at the Venture Compound, but with more free time now found himself opening them back up again. 

He just stared at the picture of his ward as a child, he couldn’t have been older then eleven but he looked so dead inside, someone’s hand titling his head up enough to show off the impressive bruising around his neck, the deep purple contrasting against his pale throat. 

Vendata had done this to him at eleven.

All of Rusty’s injuries were mandatorily documented, some pages were just pictures paper clipped to nothing but censored text. 

It was protocol for children in this line of work, Brock had to wonder though if all of Rusty’s injuries had been accounted for or did Jonas sweep some under the rug with his dashing smile and stack of money he slid to the higher ups.

Brock vividly remembered a large burn over Rusty’s right shoulder running under his tank top from the other night but that wasn’t accounted for in the large file. Maybe he had got it as an adult, but those still had to be recorded if they happened on the compound.

It was a way to save their own ass if Rusty ever tried to sue them for not protecting him properly. If all injuries were documented and accounted for and shown that the OSI had done everything in their power to help him, there wasn’t a lot he could do.

Or that’s what they told new recruits, any potential law suits usually had their memories wiped clean and all grievances swept under the rug, the medical records were a way for the OSI to know everything about the wards they took on.

He hissed a little getting to the stuff that had brought on the third treaty with the Guild and had enforced Rusty’s law to the torture acts. 

Rusty Venture was ten years old when some nut case became obsessed with him, not his dad, not his dad’s friends, the tiny child who could not defend himself and was often described by the Guild arches in this file as ‘creepily obedient to demands’.

Brock had seen countless dead bodies in his life and even a few dead kids in his line of work, it just came with the job but something about the over kill in torturing a ten-year-old just turned his stomach.

The broken bones, the drugs they used to twist his mind, the fact he wouldn’t talk to anyone for almost a year after he was rescued was just wrong.

Rusty Venture must have been made of tougher stuff then that to with stand it at such a young age was all Brock could assume.

Brock had more respect for that twig of a man then he thought he could muster for his dad anymore. What a strange world he lived in, respecting the petty bean pole who treated him like hired help more then his larger then life father who could at least pretend to respect him.

\----

Brock found everyone except the person he was assigned to protect sitting around the living room talking among themselves about where a good vacation spot would be.

Brock ignored them heading up the stairs towards Rusty’s room.

He paused at the door way hearing Rusty arguing with someone on the other side of the door, everyone else in the house was down stairs so it must have been a phone call.

“My equations weren’t the problem, Ben. Don’t give me this shit.”

“Another one died last night, Rust. Your dad is gonna have our asses if he comes back down here and finds we have made no progress.”

“He is already having my ass now, P.r.o.b.l.e.m is not working and the pills are barely slowing the problem anymore.”

“Just get down here Rust, you are the only one who can help me with this shit.”

“I can’t leave now, it’s the middle of the afternoon.”

“Man, when was the last time you slept, Rust? You look like shit.”

“I don’t have time for sleep right now…listen, I’ll be down there in a minute, I just need to get Kano up here to watch the babies and think of an excuse.” 

“Don’t take too many of those pills, Rust. I know this is important for your father’s life, but I don’t want you going down that down hill spiral again either…”

Rusty said nothing and the voices died down, Brock heard a rattle of pills from the other side of the door and Rusty gulping them down. 

One of the babies started crying then and he heard Rusty shushing him gently.

“Daddy didn’t mean to upset you, Hank,” he whispered gently, and Brock could only imagine him pressing their foreheads together like he always did to calm his children down, “I just have a lot of stress going on right now.”

He began chuckling as Hank began cooing his name and trying to say he loved him.

“You don’t need to worry about it, baby. I love you too.”

Brock chose then to enter the room.

Rusty bolted up from his bed making Hank start screaming again, the noise waking Dean up from his afternoon nap.

Brock would usually help Rusty out a little picking up the other twin, but he left Dean to scream in his cradle, firmly shutting the door behind him and sending a glare Rusty’s way. 

“Going somewhere?”

“Does it look like I’m going anywhere?” Rusty sneered back and Brock couldn’t argue it did. He was barely dressed, a pair of pajama bottoms and a large black tee shirt with Action Johnny on it barely counted.

Rusty walked over picking Dean up before hurrying down the stairs, Brock close behind him glaring at him the entire way as he hurried to his father telling him they needed to talk. 

“I’m sorry gentleman, I need to see to something important, can you please watch the twins a moment while I talk to Rusty?”

“Geez, Rust, you look like shit,” Pete mumbled to his friend taking the twins, “We are supposed to be taking a break. You aren’t working right now are you?”

“Rusty working? That’s a joke,” Billy snickered quick to take Dean from Pete, not wanting to deal with one of Hank’s famous tantrums.

“But seriously those bags are starting to look like black eyes, maybe I should take some blood samples or something, that can’t be healthy.”

“Thank you for the concern Billy,” Jonas replied pulling his son into a one arm hug, stroking his hair in what should have been a comforting matter but Rusty was tensing hard at the touch, “But Rusty and I need to talk about something personal, family business. Then afterwards I will make sure he gets some rest.”

Brock made to shadow them, but Jonas brushed him off with a smile as well.

“It won’t be long, I promise I shall not harm my son, you may do a full body inspection when we get done if it will sooth your nerves. Not a single bruise will be left on him.”

\---

Brock took his job a bit more seriously then Jonas seemed to think he did, after the study door had been locked he retrieved some gear from his room and dove into the pool, Jonas must have been an idiot to have the pool area connect to his study where he handled all his business.

He dove all the way down, careful to stay away from the window’s line of sight and gently stuck a listening device on the bottom of the window out of sight, briefly catching his ward’s red hair on the couch and his father standing with his back turned pouring a drink for both of them from the mini bar in the back before he sunk out of sight on the side of poor wall.

He pressed the device in his ear and a smug satisfied smile bloomed across his lips as he heard Jonas talking. He swam back up before he was caught quickly dried off before cutting through the house, hearing Pete and Billy arguing about how to change a diaper not paying any attention to the half-naked blonde sneaking by. 

He closed and locked his door just in time for the end of the silence, Jonas must have been serving himself a drink, waiting for his son to talk. By the nervous breaths, Rusty was almost afraid to.

“I thought you told me your equations were perfected? Your design wouldn’t fail?” 

“My incubators aren’t the problem,” Rusty scoffed, Brock could imagine his pout, he had seen it often enough.

“It wasn’t my samples that were the problem,” Jonas hissed back at his son, “And Ben’s impressive gene splicing couldn’t have been the problem.”

“Fine! It was me that was the problem,” Rusty sighed in defeat, “It’s always me, alright?? The fucking pills don’t work anymore because of me and Problem is exploding because of me and your fucking clones keep dying because of me.”

“I don’t know where you get this defeatist attitude from,” Jonas snarled his way, “Billy is right, you could go for more of a can-do attitude.”

“You know what? Fuck this entire thing,” Rusty hissed his father’s way, “Just fucking die for all I care.”

“You don’t have a choice but to comply,” his father threatened, “You know what the consequences are. Comply to my demands or be back on the streets without me or the OSI’s protection.”

“Do you want me to go see Ben or do you want to go see him? You haven’t been down there in two weeks, so maybe if you want this shit done right, maybe you should go.”

There was another long pause, Brock was already getting up, ready to go wait by the study door in case anything was about to happen. His father never took this long to answer back and Rusty’s breathing didn’t sound right, it sounded like he was almost panicking. It was so heavy the device could pick up on it, his breathing shouldn’t have been that loud.

“You really do look awful, kiddo, you look worse then I do. Are the pills I prescribed having that hard of side effects on you?”

“Nightmares, just nonstop. I have been going to Ben’s more, I just can’t sleep.”

“Don’t cry, shh, its ok, Rust,” his father whispered in a more soothing manner then he had ever heard him talk to his son, “Come here, that’s right, Daddy is here. I know I have been hard on you lately. I will talk to Ben later tonight, its ok darling, please stop crying.”

“I don’t know why you always single me out,” Rusty sobbed his words muffling out, he must have been pressing himself against his father babbling. 

“You are above all the rest, my darling, you are the only one who matters here. You are the only one who can be at my level, but you must try harder. You must be better. Stop fighting me. You are proof this research can work, but we must try harder to get better results this time. Can you try harder for daddy, darling?”

All of Rusty’s replies were muffled and uncatchable through the transmitter, if he was saying anything important it wasn’t like Brock would make them out. 

“Billy is right, you need to have another checkup, nightmares aren’t uncommon side effects, but you aren’t sleeping at all?”

“Not much, the nightmares just keep getting worse. Ben is always up though, so I just go there.”

“Ben is a nocturnal creature,” Jonas chuckled affectionately, “That man was a gift when you were born. He stayed up all through the nights, you barely slept those first few months and it was hell.”

“You are lucky Hank and Dean sleep.” 

“Let’s go see what’s going on, Rust and then I think you should try to rest. You are just going to collapse if you keep going like this.” 

Brock turned off the device, throwing the earpiece hastily back in his trunk before quickly getting redressed.

\---

Brock didn’t hesitate to go right down to the down stairs lab after he heard the father and son leave the study. 

Neither looked surprised as he entered the room and instantly came over to stand by Rusty giving Jonas an odd look seeing him with a needle poised and ready to be stuck into his son.

“No need to worry,” Jonas chuckled gently patting his son’s hand he had held with his fingers, “I am just going to draw a few blood samples from Rusty then give him a very mild sedative so he can rest this afternoon.”

“Get over yourself, you aren’t really protecting me from anything right now, so just go pretend to check the fences again or something,” Rusty sneered his way but it didn’t have any of the force his passive aggressive comments usually had, it was defeated and tired just like everything else about him.

“Now, now, Rusty, no need to be rude,” his father gently chastised his son easing the needle into his vein making Rusty cringe hard and turn away, “Easy Rust, just relax, don’t make this harder then it needs to be.”

Rusty clamped his eyes shut and his glasses began to tip off his nose as he jolted a little at the sensation, his finger nails scraping against the exam bench. His father did this twice more with two separate needles, Rusty reacting just as poorly with each draw of blood. Brock could only assume it had to do with the amount of times he had seen documented someone drugged him up as a kid.

“There we are,” his father said capping the needle and showing the full vial to his son, “See? Not so bad. I don’t understand why you are like this around needles.”

Brock knew there was some passive aggressive answer somewhere up in Rusty’s brain, he had one for every situation but maybe he just didn’t want to spoil the mood so said nothing bandaging his own arm up and pulling the tourniquet off himself as his father walked away to store the blood sample across the room in the fridge.

“Let me guess? You want to look for bruises?” Rusty asked almost playfully shaking his head watching Brock eye him up and down.

“He’s only doing his job, Rust,” his father chuckled gently cupping his son’s face and tilting his head back letting Brock see his every action before pulling one of his son’s eyelids open and shining a flash light against the iris before doing the same to the other.

“Much more professional then Brandish ever was in any case,” his father mumbled taking his son’s pulse and jotting down the results before taking his blood pressure and jotting that down as well.

“Take your shirt off, Rust, show your body guard you aren’t concealing any injuries.”

Rusty didn’t look too pleased with this decision glaring towards both his father and his body guard but knew he didn’t really have much say in the matter. His father always got his way. He took his glasses off and handed them to his father who smiled taking them from his son so he could yank his shirt off.

His father took the shirt before saying in a disapproving tone, “Why in the world did you keep this?”

“Helper hasn’t done laundry yet, it was that or the tight kid size Team Venture shirt you made me keep.”

“Now that shirt is a classic, classic design, lots of memories.”

“It fits like a crop top now and has a giant blood stain on it! I don’t see why I need it.”

Brock was barely listening to father and son banter at each other, silently inspecting every inch of his ward. He remembered the files he had been looking at earlier and could now place a story on each scar that mapped out quite the traumatic tale across the man’s back, torso and arms.

He stopped his line of sight on the large burn on his shoulder that stretched across his right shoulder blade and down his back. That wasn’t in his files, but he had seen it before on Rusty.

“That was from my ex,” Rusty sighed yanking his shirt back from his dad and pulling it back on, “She wanted us to be together forever.”

“Brandish had an odd way of going about her job in general,” Jonas said with a shake of his head, “Always wanting to be in the center of attention and never letting us go about our work.”

“Just drug me already so I can go back upstairs, Hank is probably throwing a fit, he hates it when Billy tries to pick him up.”

“You spoil those damn kids,” Jonas chuckled but gave his son what he wanted letting him leave before turning his attention to Brock.

“See? I’m not exactly the bad guy you make me out to be,” he said with a gentle smile patting Brock on the shoulder before following behind his son. 

“Cloning is illegal, you know that don’t you Venture?”

Jonas paused turning a serious glance Brock’s way.

“You can tell your higher ups whatever you choose to, I can assure you, they already know and then some.”

“A warning Samson, I do find you to be a respectable young man and I admire you a great deal for your professionalism but don’t go trying to make enemies with the wrong people. I am within my right to do what I do, don’t think you won’t be cast out of the OSI and dishonored messing with things you shouldn’t.”

With that warning he swept past Brock easily gently pushing Rusty up the rest of the stairway seeing his son waiting for him. Rusty just stared nervously at Brock refusing to move a moment but his father just took him by the shoulders whispering something in his ear before they left Brock alone in the lab.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been super sick but I wrote this! I hope it ended up good!


	7. Pills

Brock had gotten up at the same time he had been getting up since he had entered the OSI five years ago, five right on the dot. 

He completed his daily work out and stepped out of his room fully ready to start the perimeter checks as usually and his morning jog when he paused in the living room seeing Rusty up as well, already drinking this early in the morning. 

He was drinking straight out of the bottle, the TV was on playing what looked like a badly recorded stage show. 

“A little early to be hitting the bottle isn’t it?”

Rusty jumped at his body guard’s voice, dropping the bottle, liquor spilling into the cushions. 

“Fuck,” Rusty hissed but didn’t really move to do anything about the spill, staying in his spot.

“Are you supposed to be mixing sleeping pills and booze?” Brock asked with a shake of his head, smirking a little at the glare Rusty shot him.

“Go do your job and leave me be,” Rusty grumbled picking the bottle up and gently swishing the content inside and groaning seeing there was only a tiny slither remaining, the rest of it had gone into the couch. 

“You being alive is my job.”

“Well look at that,” Rusty drawled out pressing two fingers against his own wrist, “I appear to be alive. A job well done.”

Brock shook his head and sent a hardened look Rusty’s way before leaning over the couch and checking his ward’s pulse himself making sure he would be alive when he got back after mixing his meds his dad kept upping the dose on and alcohol. 

His pulse was low and sluggish, but it wasn’t dangerously low, so Brock shrugged about to pull away when Rusty cupped his cheek with his other hand and gently placed a kiss on his lips. 

It wasn’t a deep kiss, there was something innocent about the way he just pressed their lips together, almost inviting Brock to deepen the kiss and do as he pleased. Being this close to the man, Brock almost gagged at the strong smell of booze, the hand pressed against his cheek shook a little before slipping from his cheek and resting on his shoulder. 

Considering how drunk he appeared to be right now, Brock didn’t put to much stock into it pushing him back into the couch. 

“No one is up,” Rusty purred grabbing onto Brock once more and forcing him to look into his dilated pupils, slight tremors running through him as he forced himself to remain upright enough to cling to Brock’s neck. His hot breath hitting against Brock’s face making him grimace at the smell.

Morning breath and booze just didn’t mix as well Rusty must have thought, Brock was sure somewhere in his intoxicated mind he thought he was seductive, but his act wasn’t doing it for Brock.

“I see the way you watch me. You can do whatever you want to me, right here, right now and no one would know.”

Brock just began laughing shoving his ward into the couch cushions once more, watching with an eye roll as he toppled ungracefully backwards onto the floor, his expression falling into disappointment.

“You aren’t my type.”

Rusty looked offended but otherwise didn’t try anything else, just laid on the floor not having the energy or strength to pull himself back on the couch, almost pouting that his body guard wasn’t going to do anything with him when he was mixing sleeping pills and an entire bottle of tequila together.

Brock knew he wouldn’t remember any of this when he sobered up in a few hours, so didn’t hold it against him too much as he left to go complete his morning routine.

\----

It was nearly five in the evening and Brock opened Rusty’s door after a long day of his absence to make sure the man hadn’t died on him. 

Rusty was on the bed, his pillow over his head, grunting out low threats as Helper dug through his closet.

“My suit case is packed…oh my god…” he caught him hissing at the robot as he continued to throw things out of his closet making his sons giggle loudly clapping their hands together.

Helper began beeping towards Rusty, but the man just groaned louder rolling onto his side.

“No, I don’t need winter gear, we are going to my dad’s stupid island.”

Helper just began beeping more rapidly towards the man who finally rose from the bed tossing the pillow at the robot in annoyance.

“No! Why in the hell would a blizzard happen on a tropical island??”

Helper began beeping more rapidly flailing his arms around making the babies more excited, clapping harder as his red siren began going off.

“The Weather Yeti…” Rusty groaned out, face palming before forcing himself out of bed, “Yes Helper, we are sure going to find whatever the hell a Weather Yeti is on Spider Skull Island.”

He staggered on his feet, gripping the side of Hank’s crib for support, he was pretty hung over from that morning’s bender and who knew how long he had been drinking when everyone else had retired to bed.

Brock rolled his eyes forcing his charge to sit back on his bed and being thanked with a swat on the hand and Rusty demanding he not touch him. The very opposite of what he had wanted this morning.

“Please inform this bucket of bolts Yetis are unable to control the weather and make blizzards and that Yetis don’t exist…”

“You have never seen a Yeti?” Brock asked quirking his eyebrow and Rusty just moaned loudly rolling his eyes.

“No because its usually just people in masks, very unstable people in masks who just want to steal from my dad or fight my dad or sometimes one of my uncles…”

Rusty trailed off frowning, maybe for the first time in his life taking in how strange and abnormal his life truly was. 

He seemed lost in thought as Helper began beeping again and dumping out the suit case he had packed himself yesterday and filling it with winter clothing seemingly convinced his charge needed to stay warm. Rusty seemed done fighting with him so just groaned out ‘whatever’ before turning towards Brock.

“You don’t need to go with us, we are going to a secluded island for a week. You can just go do whatever.”

“My mission was---”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know,” Rusty cut him off annoyed, “Are you even human? You just think about the mission and that’s it? You have been stuck on this compound for five months, you aren’t going a little stir crazy?”

Brock said nothing, every part of him itched to leave this creepy compound and get out from under Jonas’s eyes probably just as much as Rusty. It had become just as tedious for him to watch day in and day out a group of nerds tinker away at a project with very little else happening. He was getting antsy and just wanted Spinx to attack already but they sure were taking their sweet time sending any threats. 

“You are just fine with watching us blow up expensive prototypes and come home to play house with me? Why don’t you just leave? Fuck the OSI man, this can’t be worth it.”

Brock just frowned at the man, rolling his eyes and the other man just chuckled at his response.

“You’re always dying to know how I fucked up so bad to end up here but what the hell did you do to piss off your higher ups and get stuck on babysitting duty?”

Helper began beeping at him and Rusty scowled hard at the robot.

“God forbid I said a curse word!”

Another round of beeping that just ground at Brock’s nerves, he had no idea how Rusty could possibly know what that meant. Rusty turned his nastiest snarl the robot’s way, his smug smile instantly dropping and his arms flinging around annoyed as he talked.

“Yeah go do that! Go find the swear jar! Then take it directly to my dad who keeps every cent I own because I’m ‘irresponsible’.” 

Helper continued to beep loudly carrying Rusty’s suitcase now filled with winter clothing and the things Rusty had packed himself all over the floor, slamming the door hard behind him. Hank was trying to pull himself up, tears already in his eyes now that the robot had left.

Brock sighed scooping the baby up easily and handing him to his father before he began throwing his tantrum that the robot had left, ignoring Hank completely. 

Rusty was cuddling his son close to him and Hank was gurgling his title loudly, yanking his dad’s hand around babbling to him in fragmented words his annoyance. Calling Helper the ‘robo’ and telling his father he went bye-bye.

“He’s a very rude robo,” Rusty agreed with his son sneering at the mess Helper made of his room, “He just threw our things around and didn’t even have time to say hello to you, did he?”

“Does your dad seriously have access to all your money?” Brock asked shaking his head.

“Its his money, he says,” Rusty sighed shaking his head, “I am not completely forgiven for leaving without his permission the last time.”

“What did you do?”

“I’m tired of that question,” Rusty said firmly shaking his head his snarl not going unnoticed by his son who began to desperately yank at his father not liking the change in attitude, “Tell me why you are really here. Who you pissed off to get this assignment. Then maybe I will feel more inclined to go into my background with you.”

Brock glared back at Rusty, both giving each other hardened stares, Hank didn’t like this at all tapping on his father’s cheek before waving towards Brock, tears welling in his eyes.

“Did you fuck your commander’s wife? You seem like the type,” Rusty snickered making Brock glare harder.

“You’re really going to talk like that in front of yer kids?”

“Oh relax,” Rusty said with a roll of his eyes pressing a kiss against Hank as he became fussier grabbing for his father’s hair, “They can barely talk yet, just cute little fragments. I really have to worry about curse words around them when they get into their terrible threes and will weaponize those words.”

Rusty nudged his head towards the cradle Dean was now yelling ‘dada’ from and Brock rolled his eyes and picked the baby up handing him to his father as well, who pulled both his boys close as they began shoving at each other both wanting to be the center of their father’s attention. 

“Be a good body guard and go heat up some food for the twins, they haven’t eaten in awhile and Helper is too busy being a snitch to be helpful. And while you are down there, get me some pain killers, I have a splitting head ache.”

Brock was more or less ignoring him as he began making a list of things for his body guard to do since the robot was busy. He stared at the mess the robot had created when he had emptied the suitcase on the ground, he frowned bending over the mess.

Pills were scattered everywhere from a bottle that must have tipped over in the bag. He picked up one of the large capsules and raised his eye brow at Rusty who was turning pale like he had been caught doing something he wasn’t supposed to. 

Under his cloths were blue prints for the incubators Brock had heard him talking about with his father a few days ago, their side cloning practice they had been hiding from everyone.

“You just leave evidence on the illegal projects you work on lying around?”

“It wasn’t lying around until Helper started throwing my things around,” Rusty grumbled, his eyes not one the blue prints Brock held but the pills that had been spilled out by the robot. 

“You don’t really need to worry much about the cloning anyway,” Rusty sighed glancing out the window, “It’s not working. Unless my father just wishes to be a useless baby, its not going to work.”

“Is that what you were? A clone of your father?”

“Yeah, I mean you have been listening in on our conversations anyway, I was a failed attempt. It didn’t work then and it is not going to work now but my dad is stubborn.”

Brock eyed Rusty up and down and he chuckled.

“I was a failed attempt,” he stressed once more shaking his head and kissing both his kids on the head as they became fussy, “I wasn’t made in an incubator though, Dad got one of his girlfriends to carry me to term. I have the exact same genes as my father but well…none of his… him.” 

He paused a moment, seemingly lost in thought, bouncing his sons in his arms before sighing loudly and turning his tired eyes on Brock.

“You can tell your higher ups whatever you want about my dad, they won’t listen. They didn’t listen to Myra either and I think that more then anything drove her insane; my father whispering things in her ear didn’t help…” 

Brock didn’t think he was going to say anything else, watching him beginning to hum to his sons and rock them more intently as they snuggled against his face. In truth, Brock wasn’t sure if he should report the Venture family. After the trouble he himself had gotten into it was very unlikely anyone would listen and well the Myra situation didn’t sit right with Brock. It wasn’t the first time Rusty had brought up she had known more then she let on in her reports and Brandish was a higher level then Brock himself was and if she was ignored, he doubted he would be listened to. All he could do was wait out this weird situation and maybe after taking down Spinx himself could he hope to be reassigned to a new case. 

He was surprised when Rusty addressed him at all again and just smirked at him rolling his eyes sitting next to him on the bed when he did.

“Don’t even ask, no, my sons are not failed clones of anyone. They are the result of me eloping.”

“With who?”

Rusty just shook his head kiss each of his son’s heads as they became fussy with him not paying them as much attention as they wanted.

“My tragic backstory can’t be told until I am near death, isn’t that the rule of this life or something? Never give away the big secrets until you are dying? I sure didn’t know I was a clone until my dad laid it on me he was dying and threw me into the wonderful world of cloning research.” 

He was rambling, Brock turned a stern look towards him just to make him stop. Once he started complaining he just didn’t stop. 

“If you want, I will ask my father if you can meet Ben. Then you can see how much a failure this illegal project is.”

“How did you sneak past me to see this Ben the entire time I was here?” 

Rusty hummed a moment, allowing Hank to break free of his hold and crawl onto Brock. Brock didn’t stop the baby as he began cuddling against him calling him ‘bra’ not quite grasping his name yet.

“I haven’t been sleeping well lately, we were going to wait on the cloning process until Problem was stable, but I just went to Ben, mainly for the weed he grows, but he was just going crazy with the designs and we got started. Now that’s blowing up and my dad is mad at me once more for starting something else up that is blowing up in our faces now.”

Brock kept his face neutral just raising his eyebrow at Rusty but didn’t give him the usual glare he always saved for him while Hank was on his lap happily pulling at the larger man’s fingers.

“Ben lives on the compound. Has for like twenty years. I don’t think he has left these grounds since he started working here. He lives on Potter’s field. I’m sure you have seen it, it’s the creepy old house off the creepy old woods by the creepy large field.”

Rusty gave him a smug look as he added.

“It’s a grave yard. Where do you think action psycho hid the corpses of the poor sons of bitches who got past our perimeters?” 

Brock gave him another warning stare about talking like that in front of his own kids as Hank began trying to repeat what his father was saying, he was getting pretty good at pronouncing the words ‘bitch’ and ‘fuck’, Rusty was really going to regret that soon.

“Come on, are you really tempting fate teaching your kids every curse word you know?”

Before Rusty could answer there was a knock on the door, Rusty quickly snatched the blue prints from Brock, shoving them into his night stand drawer and Brock stared suspiciously at his toe pinching some clothing and hiding the spilled pills under it.

Pete poked his head in and gave a smug smile seeing Brock sitting on the bed next to Rusty.

“Am I interrupting something here?”

“God no,” Rusty groaned out with a shake of his head watching his friend just invite himself in plopping on the other side of him.

“Yeah, sure, nothing at all is going on.” 

Brock wanted to punch that smug look off his face and maybe the infant smacking playfully at his hair was stopping him from doing it.

“What do you want?” Rusty snarled his friend’s way looking just as defensive about the insulation he would do anything with Brock.

“Yer damn robot has lost his damn mind,” Pete said shaking his head, “Busted into our room and just tossed the cloths out of our suitcases and ran off with them.”

“He thinks there is going to be a blizzard on Spider Skull island.” 

Pete just gave Rusty an odd look before he began chuckling. Rusty gave him a hard glare as if guessing this was his fault and Pete sheepishly began scratching the side of his head, giving his friend his most apologetic smile.

“That’s Billy’s damn fault, he has been telling him about villains all day and I think it went to his head. I could only wish we were going to somewhere that had blizzards, I have told yer dad like a million times, I am an albino, I don’t think going to an island is the best idea.”

“He doesn’t listen, you know that…”

Rusty paused whatever he was about to say as another knock on the door happened. He sighed and demanded they enter. His father stepped in before he could finish his sentence.

“Helper is paranoid tonight and packing up half the kitchen, so we will be going out tonight for dinner. You boys be ready in twenty minutes.”

Rusty sighed loudly forcing himself up, gently forcing a screaming Hank from Brock but after a few minutes of trying to collect his child, Brock just brushed him off. Rusty shrugged but demanded he get him ready as he left his room with Pete following behind him, whispering something into Rusty’s ear that was making a glare settle in place as he slammed his door shut behind him.

Brock just glanced down at Hank snuggling close to him on his lap and gently patted his head, getting up a few moments later collecting cloths off the floor, frowning at the pills Rusty had been trying to hide from his friend before going to meet up with them in the bathroom to get the twins ready.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It didn't count but damn it, I needed Rusty and Brock to kiss.


	8. The Restaurant

It had been too long since Brock had the opportunity to drive his car and he was itching to do so, maybe being a little impatient with Rusty who was taking forever to get ready. 

Rusty for all his talk about wanting to leave, all his threats to just do so to his father, seemed hesitant to do so given the opportunity to leave the Compound, even if just for dinner. He kept deciding he did not like the cloths he put on his children, Pete at first seemed to have fun dressing and re dressing the babies with his friend but after awhile he was becoming as impatient as Brock. 

“Rust, just put them in something and get dressed so we can leave,” his father moaned walking up to the bathroom, hands on his hip and a glare settling in place watching Rusty messing with Dean’s hair while Brock just held Hank sitting on the toilet. 

“I want them to look nice, just leave and Brock and I will meet you there.”

His father just sighed louder and shook his head, “I let you spend too much time with your Uncle Horace, you two are two of a kind. Two hours to get himself ready and three to get you dressed anywhere we went.”

“Maybe I would be more like you if you had any interest in parenting,” Rusty grumbled out bitterly and Brock sent a warning glare Jonas’s way as he looked about ready to back hand his son. 

“We shall discuss this later,” he snarled his son’s way before straightening up, sliding back into a lighter expression and adding as Pete came out of his room once more with Billy in toe, “Do not take too long. I expect you to arrive before 8, if you do not, I shall order for you and you have never liked that.”

“Fine, fine,” Rusty grumbled out kissing Dean as he became fussy on him sick of his dad messing with his hair, “Just go.”

His father gave him a warning look but didn’t say anything else as he told Billy and Pete to come with him, his son would meet them there.

“He’s going to order for me anyway,” Rusty grumbled picking Dean off the counter and letting him cuddle against him, “He always has.”

“I don’t really feel like going out, I like the idea of having the house to myself, how pissed do you think he will be if I just don’t show up?”

“Just get dressed,” Brock grunted taking Dean from the man who began pouting but didn’t other wise try to take the baby back.

He was pouting a little as he went into his room but to Brock’s surprise, a few moments later he came out dressed. His cloths were wrinkled and looser on him then Brock remembered that turtle neck being last time he had worn it but it looked to be more of a case of Helper messing up the laundry, he had stretched out three of Brock’s good shirts as well, much to his annoyance. That robot had been high wired for days now, anything set him off, maybe he was due for maintence.

He walked down the hall and pointed up silently telling Brock to pull the string to pull the ladder down so he could enter the attic.

Brock rolled his eyes; the man was tall enough to do it himself but of course he wanted Brock to do most of the work.

He handed the man one of his children before easily pulling down the entrance to the attic and soon after they both went up the ladder. 

“I never opened the car seats, I haven’t left the compound in almost a year,” Rusty began and then just stopped not going off on any tangent or throwing in a rude comment to throw it in like he normally would.

He just stopped staring at the mess of piled up boxes and broken equipment around him. He gently brushed his fingers through Dean’s hair, messing up the style he had taken so long to make.

So that’s why he was acting so strange, he was nervous about leaving the compound. It didn’t seem that excited about leaving for a week either but maybe that would be easier for him going to a secluded island rather than a packed restaurant on a Friday night.

He walked a little farther, side stepping around some boxes labeled ‘Rusty’s’ before picking up a dusty, never opened box for a car seat and tossed it towards Brock before picking up another identical box. 

He attempted to take Hank from Brock once more, but Hank began screaming ‘no’ at his father making him sigh and give up. Brock smirked down at the baby contently snuggling into his chest, he had just made his father do a portion of the work carrying one of the car seats, that was no easy feat.

Brock shook his head watching Rusty just kick the car seat he was supposed to carry out of the attic. 

It crashed on the ground making Dean begin crying at the large sound, Rusty just pulled him closer to him and began back down the stairs again.

\----

Rusty was surprisingly quiet during the drive to the restaurant, Brock always took him as a back seat driver, half expecting him to constantly be looking over Brock’s shoulder and demanding he do the speed limit. 

Instead he was quiet, staring out the window, every few seconds glancing back to his sons strapped in the back seat. 

“Stop getting your panties in a bunch,” Brock said firmly making Rusty’s glare hit him at last, “Nothing is going to happen.”

Rusty looked ready to insult him, maybe demean his abilities as a body guard, but wisely kept his mouth shut. He stared at Brock a moment, calculating what he was going to do but when he didn’t react in anyway, he just turned his head back towards the window.

“Look…” Brock began stopping hard at a red light making Rusty growl and his nostrils flared in frustration as he shot forward but he continued to say nothing. 

“Everything is going to go fine. We are going to eat dinner and nothing is going to happen and if it does, I will take care of it.”

“Yes, yes, I know because it is your job…” Rusty hissed back at the man before sighing, “I have no doubt you can murder people. You knocked out four of my teeth with one punch. One. That is damn impressive. Most just knock out like… one with a single strike but you got out four.”

Brock gave him an odd look and he began to chuckle humorlessly.

“Oh relax, most of my teeth aren’t real, haven’t been since I was twelve.”

Brock continued to give him an odd stare not really knowing where he was going with this, but he would rather find out now before they arrived at the restaurant. He heard the cars behind them impatiently honking but didn’t move, letting them have their freak out as he just stared at Rusty. 

“Oh my god, just go, you are holding up traffic!” Rusty bellowed instead of getting to any kind of real point to his rambling. 

Brock said nothing nearly running a red light as the light began to change after sitting there so long, Rusty Venture was a strange person. He said weird and cryptic shit almost on accident, like even he didn’t know where he was going with this. He had no real filter, he let every insult and demeaning thing slip out and with that he also let out things most would consider too personal.

Brock knew that had to have something to do with his childhood, he was never taught how to socialize properly. Even in college Rusty had been like this, he just said what he thought. His idiot friends thought every word that came from his mouth was gold only encouraging him to just say whatever.

In his the almost year he had been at the compound, Brock had only seen Rusty censor himself for one person and that was his father.

\---

It should be unsurprising at this point but of course Jonas Venture owned his own restaurant.

During the height of Rusty’s fame and the resurgence of Jonas’s own popularity in the ‘80s, Jonas had gone overboard in Brock’s opinion with the Venture Brand.

Brock had been just the right age to experience the insanity of it all and he hated to admit it now but was a bit too into the brand back then. Luckily for him, his mom had never been able to afford any of the crap Venture Industries had shilled out from the lunch boxes to the toys to the home science and adventure kits but during the height of it all he had managed to eat here, Jonas’s exclusive establishment, The Little Wonder.

His mom had worked her ass off night and day waitressing here and Brock and his brothers were lucky enough to come here once, it wasn’t the most child friendly place around but every inch of it was covered in Jonas’s legacy and that was always enough.

Pulling up to the Valet parking now, Brock realized what a dump it had become, no longer the breathtaking place he remembered.

Jonas’s hey days were over, his son was hardly profitable now (hadn’t been since puberty did a number on him) and that didn’t reflect as much at Compound. It was business as usual, he still had his usual suppliers and funders backing up projects for the Jonas Venture.

Brock hadn’t realized how broken his legacy was to those outside of the scientific community and the OSI, the places he still had a place in.

Once this side of town had been richer but it had tanked hard in the years following Rusty Venture’s popularity and the once grand establishment only the elite could get into was in a run down part of town looking just as run down as everything else.

Rusty was quiet, not acknowledging the nervous valet who was eying him down, almost questioning himself if he was the owner’s son by his look. Brock expected Rusty to threaten the young man, make any kind of snide comment his way about his appearance (he had an easy pot shot since the young man’s jacket was lopsided and unbuttoned) but he didn’t say anything. He picked up both his sons easily from the back seat and turned away from Brock heading inside.

Brock watched him leave before giving a curt warning to the valet about how his life depended on his car being returned to him in one piece before he caught up with Rusty at the entrance, gently bouncing both his sons against his hips.

Brock gently put his hand on the man’s back and gave him a push inside knowing he wouldn’t take it on his own. He was acting strange today, well stranger then normal and Brock had to wonder if it was just his nerves making him act this way. He remembered the pills and the booze and the chronic nightmares he complained about, maybe it wasn’t Brock’s place but maybe, just maybe being around Jonas wasn’t the safest place for Rusty.

Stepping through the door was like taking a step back in time, like the compound itself stepping in here was like stepping into the seventies.

The compound was still under Jonas’s watchful eye though and had seen enough upgrades to still glow when you stepped onto the grounds, with a nostalgic feel to it for anyone who grew up watching the Ventures on TV.

The restaurant had seen better days and looked like it needed more then a few repairs.

Most of the bar stools were broken down Brock noted and the wine racks looked ready to break if touched wrong.

Rusty was eying the bar too as they stepped in, not paying attention to the hostess trying to get his attention. He just grunted he was Rusty Venture and he was here to meet up with his father. By the frown on the woman’s face, Brock could tell she didn’t believe him.

No one expected cute as a button, bright eyed all American Rusty Venture to grow up to look like a high school math teacher who probably sold drugs to his students on the side.

It did not help Rusty’s image that he still smelled like a mini bar after his early morning bender and had a faint smell of cigarettes from being in Brock’s car.

He was antsy beginning bouncing a little on his heels as the hostess told them to wait a moment, probably to go ask Jonas himself if the string bean of a man was really his son. 

While they waited Brock did a quick check around their surroundings, never leaving anything to chance.

It was dead in here tonight, the bar tender looked half asleep leaning against the counter, his only two costumers sitting comfortably close to each other talking amongst themselves. 

An older, scholarly man who looked like more like Rusty’s dad then his own father with his thick framed glasses, thinning and greying hair with only puffs of what must have been a deep red at one time that matched Rusty’s own. His date was a pretty blonde girl young enough to be his daughter, dressed in a provocative red dress that made Brock smile to himself. She was nodding along with everything he hissed her way in a cool manner.

The older man looked frustrated as he seemed to argue with the younger woman who wasn’t paying him much mind, for a moment Brock locked eyes with her and she smiled.

Before Brock could place why she felt so familiar the older man noticed them as well, rising from his spot and heading towards them making Brock frown as he addressed his ward.

“Thaddeus?”

Rusty’s impatient bouncing stopped and he began to go stiff as the man approached him, Brock recognized him from somewhere. It appeared Rusty did as well the way he tensed hard staring at him. 

“I heard you finally came home to your father,” the man said almost hesitantly almost afraid to fully approach Rusty, staying close to the bar, leaning against a stool.

“I did,” Rusty hissed his teeth grinding, holding back his anger, he knew this man it appeared and it hadn’t ended well last time he saw him.

“Your father is a very forgiving man,” the man noted his stare hardening at Rusty’s attitude, “I had to make the hard decision to kick Johnny out.”

The statement sounded accusatory, Rusty looked towards his sons ignoring the older man entirely now.

The man was also staring hard at the twins as well, a hatred burning in his stare that made Brock put himself between the two men. 

The only noise was the faint music and the mummer of chatter from the dinning room in the next room, Rusty was refusing to look at the man but the man wouldn’t take his eyes off Rusty.

“Johnny was getting sober and you had to come back into his life,” the man finally hissed Rusty’s way no longer veiling his words with any sort of civility.

“His breakdown and turn to crime was your fault and you are being rewarded for it.”

Brock was about to open his mouth to get rid of the man before any problems arose from his accusations when the hostess returned with Jonas on her heel.

“Thaddeus Venture, what could you have been doing to take so long young man? I almost thought I would have to---” 

Jonas stopped chastising his son as he finally noticed the other man glaring at him, sinking against the bar stool he had been leaning against as if the weight of being near Jonas Venture was too much to bear.

“Benton,” Jonas said wearing a large smile only thinly disguising his displeasure seeing the man, “What a pleasant surprise finding you here.”

Brock eyed the man up, he thought he knew him, Benton Quest, he used to be a pretty big name in the scientific community but after his son went off the deep end and began robbing his own dad, he became the laughing stock of the community. It was odd to hear him blaming Rusty for Johnny’s problems, Johnny was five years older then Rusty and began his drug addiction when Rusty was still hiding behind his own dad’s leg, too young to tempt anyone into a life of drug abuse.

“Jonas, how wonderful to see you,” it sounded like it physically hurt the man to even pretend to give Jonas Venture any kind of pleasantry.

Brock was surprised to see Rusty slide closer to his father eyes begging him to take care of the problem, looking smaller then Brock had ever seen him. Father and son shared a look for a moment, Jonas’s accusing look softening at his son’s pleading stare.

“Has Rusty introduced you to his sons?” Jonas asked it pleasantly enough but Rusty was holding his breath to hold back his anxiety attack and Benton Quest was gripping the bar hard, if he was a stronger man it would have broke it with that grip on it.

“I see he kept them,” was all Benton responded glaring harder at Rusty as he pulled his sons closer to him and decided to back behind Brock in case anything happened.

“Of course, he did!” Jonas chuckled slapping Benton fondly on the back finally approaching the man, “They are Ventures! Maybe one day Johnny can bring you home new boy adventurers to bring some pride back to your family.”

Benton’s teeth were grinding so hard even the now ignored hostess was nervously glancing at Brock hoping maybe he would put a stop to this before her technical boss got into a spat with a customer.

“I haven’t heard from Johnny in quite some time, he and Rusty used to be quite close, its odd that he wouldn’t be around…”

Jonas was tempting the other man to make a scene, tempting him to lash out and give Jonas reason to lash back. No one was paying much attention to Rusty as he tried to soothe his now fussy sons. Jonas was giving Quest his largest smile and Quest looked ready to explode now at the cocky look.

“Now I see where your son gets it,” was all he sneered, “Where he gets the idea its all fun and games to ruin other people’s lives with his impulsive behavior and leave other people to clean up his messes.”

He paused before storming out taking a quick glance at the woman at the other end of the bar he had been talking to before Brock and Rusty had arrived before turning a deadly glare towards Jonas.

“The Quest lineage may not have much pride as you put it, but your son is a whore and I hope he gets what is coming to him for the shit he put me through.”

Rusty and Jonas shared a quick glance before Jonas merely shrugged his shoulders, not afraid of the other man’s words.


	9. Secrets and Lies p1

The dinner itself was uneventful, Rusty was sure his father had taken a pot shot at his own parenting at least once, but he was too lost in his own thoughts to notice. Brock was staring at him the entire time, Rusty knew from being around men like him his entire life he would have explaining to do once they got back into the car.

Benton Quest hating him was something he had always known, he had known it since he had first begun to outshine Johnny in the public’s eye. He had known Benton hated him since he first got caught smoking weed with his son and Jonas was able to spin it into Rusty being the victim here and getting Johnny’s first arrest.

He knew Benton would hate his sons. He had known that since Benton threatened to leave him in jail and not bail him out unless he vowed to get rid of them, he didn’t want his bastard children coming back to harm his already destroyed reputation later. 

Last he had seen Johnny himself was when he and his father left him to rot in a New York police station leaving him with no choice but to crawl back to his father, begging him to take him back.

He glanced over at Brock, who was more silent then he expected him to be on the ride back home, he would admit, he could easily tell him these things. He could make his job easier and tell him exactly what he did. Tell him what his father was like, tell him Benton wasn’t a threat and he could stop making plans to stop whatever he thought he had planned.

But….

He had opened himself up like a book to Myra, he had been close and intimate and maybe even thought he could have a happy ending with her and his sons after everything.

She had turned more controlling and obsessive then even his own father. If he was honest, he feared her coming back more then he feared Spinx who seemed to be bidding their time, waiting for him to come back willingly.

Rusty always thought the commander was afraid of his father, he had acted as if he was in the short time Rusty had known him anyway, in all the time he sold weapons to him he was always quick to ask where Jonas was and if he was watching.

“Who is this Benton guy?” Brock finally demanded, lighting up a cigarette as they stopped at a red light much to Rusty’s dismay.

“You know who Benton Quest is,” Rusty sneered swatting at his hand holding the cigarette but Brock just gave him a smug smile moving his hand away from his swat. 

“Humor me,” he insisted not in the mood to play Rusty’s games.

“Benton Quest is my dad’s rival,” Rusty scoffed, “They have been having the same pissing contest since 1960.”

“Let me guess, yer old man is in the lead.”

“Pft,” Rusty scoffed glancing back at his sons sleeping soundly in the back seat.

“You need to tell me what happened between you and Johnny…”

Rusty said nothing, remembering another blonde sitting where he sat, cursing about Benton, telling him they were never going back. He was going to take care of them. No more of their dads’ bullshit.

What a lie that had turned out to be.

He didn’t say anything as they arrived back at the compound, having no words to tell Brock who snarled in annoyance watching him just get take his sleeping children out of the back seat.

Brock grabbed him by the arm before he could leave the hangar, holding it hard enough to make Rusty squirm a little where he stood.

“I can’t protect you if I don’t know what you and Johnny did. Sphinx---”

“They aren’t coming,” Rusty snarled in his face, “You are just god damn fooling yourself if you think you have to worry about them at all.”

Brock wasn’t about to let him go once he got him talking shaking him hard enough to wake his sons, both mewling loudly in his arms now as he wilted back a little at the blonde’s dangerous stare.

Rusty just glared back at him, he wanted to scream at him to just go ask his dad why he was really here, it had always been about Jonas and his relationship with the OSI.

He didn’t want to deal with the backlash though, he didn’t want to deal with his father being mad at him, he just left yanking himself away from Brock who snarled, done dealing with his attitude letting him go into the house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is short and I'm not completely proud of it, but like I feel like its a good set up point. I hope to get a better schedule on this fic. I know my updates on everything is all over the place.


End file.
